Senior Pastor

Reverend James B. Lewis, Sr., the son of the late Reverend Bert Dozier Lewis and Aletha Underwood Lewis was born in Charleston, South Carolina and reared in Bishopville where he completed his early education.  He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Studies with a minor in Natural and Social Sciences from Morris College, Sumter, SC in 1982.  During College, Rev. Lewis became a 91B-10 Combat Medic in the United States Army Reserve.  He is also a Master Hair Care Specialist. 

 Reverend Lewis was licensed as a Baptist preacher by Saint Matthew Baptist Church under the leadership of the late Dr. Benjamin James Whipper, on January 7, 1990 and received certification from the Morris College School of Religion Extension Program in Charleston on May 1, 1991.  He was ordained for the Gospel Ministry by the Executive Board of the Charleston County Baptist Association on August 9, 1992 at St. Matthew Baptist Church, under the leadership of Moderator B. J. Whipper.

 In 1992, Reverend Lewis continued his Theological training at the Gulf Coastal Seminary (Tampa, Florida) Extension in Charleston and further advanced his Theological training at the Interdenominational Theological Center/Morehouse College, Atlanta, Georgia.  In January 1994, the congregation of St. Matthew called Rev. Lewis as its' first Assistant Pastor, serving as Church Administrator and Director of Personnel.  He also instructed Sunday school, Baptist Training Union and Bible Study classes.  He served as Pastor of Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church from 1996 to 1999.  There he reorganized and trained all organizations of the church.  He led the congregation in a $400,000 renovation project of the Church, Educational building and parsonage.  During this time, he also served as Assistant Dean in the Jerusalem Baptist Association.

 Reverend Lewis is the organizing Pastor of the Covenant Missionary Baptist Church, Georgetown, SC, incorporated on June 11, 1999, where he continues to lead God's people by his example of love for God and a love for God's people.  He believes that there is redemptive value in all mankind.  His principle of ministry and life can be summed up in one of his familiar sayings "to be without love is to be without God, for God is love and to be without God, we are lost in this world."  Under his leadership at Covenant, over twenty-one ministries were established to serve God's people in and out of the church and over 3.5 acres of land has been purchased to build the sanctuary and educational facility to further advance the ministry in the Georgetown community.  In January of 2014, Reverend Lewis was also asked to pastor the Salem Missionary Baptist Church in Charleston, SC.  On February 16, 2014, Reverend Lewis began his pastorate at Salem and was installed on May 18, 2014. 

 He is an active member of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Incorporated where he serves on the Foreign Mission Board and formerly served on the Labor Relations Committee.  Reverend Lewis has served as Statistician of the Education and Missionary Convention of South Carolina.  He is presently the Vice-president for Region One of the state convention and he continues to serve on the Executive Board.  He is the immediate past General Secretary of the Charleston County Baptist Association which he served faithfully for nine years.

 Rev. Lewis is committed to the advancement of the community at large and thus serves in the following capacities:

  • Member, Board of Trustees at Morris College, Sumter, SC, where he is Chairman of the Business and Economic Committee 
  • Chairman of the Executive Board of the Charleston County Baptist Association
  • Faculty Member, The Charleston County Sunday School and BTU Congress of Christian Education
  • Faculty Member, The National Baptist Convention, USA, Incorporated
  • Instructor, Morris College Extension School of Religion, Charleston
  • Member, Black Farmers Association
  • Founding member and past Vice President for Economic and Entrepreneurial Development of the Coalition of African American Churches, Inc.
  • Vice-president-at-Large, Coalition of African American Churches, Inc. where he is spearheading the initiative for self-insurance for African American Churches.
  • Vice-president of Region One, Baptist Education and Missionary Convention of SC

Reverend Lewis is married to his life-long friend, D'Jaris D. Whipper-Lewis and they are the parents of two young adults, James, Jr. and Katie-Marie Lewis and one granddaughter, Jasira Alethia Marie.